


The Favor

by Softlight



Category: RWBY
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/F, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Secret Bees 2020, this got out of hand. whoops.
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-30
Updated: 2020-12-30
Packaged: 2021-03-10 16:40:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,578
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28430283
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Softlight/pseuds/Softlight
Summary: Blake blinked at her.  “What?”“Um, will you be my fake girlfriend?”
Relationships: Blake Belladonna/Yang Xiao Long
Comments: 14
Kudos: 128





	The Favor

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Rockystar11](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rockystar11/gifts).



> Merry Christmas, and Happy Holidays, friends!! It's been a hot minute, but I'm back for Secret Bees 2020! I got the lovely rockystar11, and I hope you enjoy this fic that entirely got out of hand! <3 <3 <3

“I need a favor.”

Never good words. Blake raised her brows, slowly spinning around in her chair to face her roommate. “What do you need?” she asked. 

Yang Xiao Long smiled weakly, and her stomach fluttered at the sight. Even Yang’s weakest smiles were brilliant rays of sunshine, and it was hard to fight her own return grin. “You’d be doing me a real solid,” Yang continued, fiddling with her pen.

“What do you need?” she repeated, crossing her arms. 

“You remember how Neon broke up with me a few weeks ago?” Yang asked. Blake’s mouth went dry as Yang ran a hand through her long golden hair, causing her muscles to ripple and stretch beautifully, but Blake managed to nod back in response. Still, she barely bit back a grimace at the mention of Neon. 

Yang let out a light laugh, scratching the back of her head. “Well, um, hm, okay. So, you know, she’s gonna be home for break too. And it’s gonna be the three hundredth anniversary of Patch’s founding and there’s gonna be a lot of people home and long story short, and basically Neon was being Neon and I kind of ended up telling her that we are dating and I was bringing you home? And now half of the town thinks we’re dating and I kind of really need you to come home with me?” Yang’s voice was incredibly high, and Blake would’ve laughed if it wasn’t for the words coming out of her mouth.

Blake blinked at her. “What?”

“Um, will you be my fake girlfriend?” Yang’s throat bobbed as her cheeks turned a lovely shade of red. “Just for break! And then I’ll come up with a break up story or something, but just for break.” Yang bit her lip. “I know you were planning on staying here for break, but I was planning on inviting you home anyways, I know Ruby wants to see you, but I’d really appreciate it-”

Blake held up her hand. “Just- just give me a minute.” Yang nodded. Blake closed her eyes and brought her fingers to her temple, rubbing vigorously. Her heart was beating unbearably fast in her chest. “You want me to pretend to be your girlfriend.” Not a question, but Yang still nodded. “Yang, I-”

“Please, Blake.” Yang’s violet eyes went soft, and her heart skipped a beat. Yang averted her gaze. “I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important to me.” 

Blake didn’t have to ask why it was important. Yang had barely been able to look at her in the days after Neon broke up with her, and Blake had seen firsthand how upset her roommate had been the past few weeks. Still, she pursed her lips and asked, “Why? I mean, why not just say you broke up with me?”

Something shifted over Yang’s face. “I already said you’re coming home,” Yang said tightly, but she wasn’t looking at her. “And I could lie and say you decided to head home, but- but I want you to come. And you don’t have to do anything! We can just hang out, we don’t even have to go to the festival, I just want you there.”

_I just want you there_. A sigh left her lips before she could stop herself, and Blake looked away from Yang. “I want to come to Patch,” she admitted. She really, really did. “But- what do you mean, pretend to be your girlfriend?” The very words make her stomach clench, and she swallowed hard. 

“You don’t have to do, like, anything physical. No kissing or anything like that,” Yang said hastily with wide eyes. Blake couldn’t help the string of disappointment she felt in her stomach, but it would be worse if she had to touch her, got to touch her. Wouldn’t it? “At most, maybe handholding? But, besides that, just us being us, you know? Hanging out and stuff.” Yang gave her a lopsided smile. “Like we don’t get mistaken for girlfriends enough.”

“Yeah,” she said, trying to force a laugh into her voice. As if her heart didn’t skip a beat every time someone asked her if they were together. But her laugh faded quickly, and she sighed. “I don’t know, Yang.”

“Seriously, we don’t even have to deal with other people,” Yang said. “Just, you know, hang around the house, go on hikes, stuff like that. Just come. And if you don’t want to pretend, that’s okay! I’ll figure something else out.” Yang ducked her head and peered up at her from golden strands that were catching the light. “I’ll figure something else out.” That beautiful face softened, and Blake’s heart tensed. “But I want you to come.”

Blake hesitated. She ran her tongue over her teeth, desperately trying to bring some moisture back to her dry mouth, and stared at her hands. Even in winter and sun-starved, her skin was warm with color, and she flexed her fingers, watching her skin stretch. Her heartbeat was loud in her head, but she still heard herself, clear as a bell, say, “Alright.”

Her heart twisted some more as Yang perked up and looked at her with wide eyes. “Alright?” her roommate asked, biting her lip as if she couldn’t believe the affirmation.

Blake nodded slowly. “I will come to Patch,” she said, “and I will pretend.” Her eyes narrowed, and she forced a joking seriousness into her voice. “But you owe me big time, Yang.” 

“Oh, don’t worry about it!” Yang said. “I got you.” Yang winked at her, and her heart stopped. 

“You better.”

* * *

Falling for Yang hadn’t been a choice. Not at first, at least. There hadn’t been enough time for her to make a choice at first, and now, how could she not want Yang? Yang glowed. She burned. She lit up a sky that had been dark for far too long. And Blake couldn’t help herself. She had never been able to help herself, not when it came to Yang.

Three years. Three years of being the blonde’s roommate. Three years of the breathtaking and boisterous beauty living breaths away from her, a fingertip’s glance away from touching at all times. It had only taken a smattering of weeks after they had first moved in freshman year to realize, oh, this was not friendship. Not just friendship, at least. Things with Yang were never lesser, they were always more. Yang overwhelmed her senses, drowned her in light, and it was impossible to think about anything except Yang, especially with her so close.

Blake glanced at the gear shift where Yang’s hand casually rested, her other freckled hand on the wheel. Yang’s hair was pulled up into a ponytail and cascading over her shoulder like gold, catching the early morning light and glowing. Blake cleared her throat and shifted upwards, refocusing her gaze on the road ahead. They had left at the crack of dawn, and Yang had dragged Blake out of her bed despite her clawing at the sheets. She felt the late night laying heavily on her eyes, and she took a deep drink of her tea.

“You sure you don’t want some coffee?” Yang asked. 

Blake wrinkled her nose and took another sip. “I’ll stick to my leaf juice,” she said. “Don’t think I didn’t notice you dumping half the sugar bowl into your thermos this morning.” Yang laughed, and Blake’s chest ached. She looked at her roommate and raised a brow. “I told you I could do some of the driving, you know. You didn’t need to hop up on sugar for this.”

“You hate driving,” Yang said casually. “And it’s not that long of a drive.”

“I think my stomach would disagree.” 

“There’s trail-mix in the cooler, right pocket.”

Blake bent down to the cooler at her feet, and there was indeed a bag of trail-mix. Well, a bag was an understatement. “Yang, there’s enough trail-mix here for us to last days if we’re stranded.”

“I like to be prepared.” Yang flicked on her sunglasses, but it was impossible to miss the smile in her eyes. “You’re not you when you’re hungry.”

“Ha ha, very funny.” 

“I am very funny, thank you!”

Blake fished the bag out of the cooler and poured some into Yang’s waiting hand before serving herself. “Ruby wants to know how close we are.”

“We’re about an hour off,” Yang said. “So tell her to plan for lunch around then.”

“How do you know she’s making lunch?” Blake asked as she quickly typed out her response to Ruby.

“It’s Ruby,” Yang drawled out. “And she’s been texting me non-stop ever since she found out you’re coming home about what you like to eat. Expect a lot of seafood. Like, a lot.” 

Blake laughed. “I certainly won’t be complaining,” she said. She tucked her Scroll back into her pocket and picked at a bit of fuzz on her sweater. “Does Ruby know?” 

“Know that we’re not actually dating?” Yang asked, impossibly casual. “Yeah, she knows. But you know she loves you, and she loves an excuse to cook for anyone who isn’t me or my dad, so you know she’s super excited for you to be here.”

“Right.” Blake kept picking at her sweater. “And your dad?”

Yang’s cough was answer enough. “He thinks we’re dating,” Yang said carefully. “But he won’t be weird. Well, no weirder than usual, I guess. I think he’ll be too invested in his sunflowers to bother much with us anyways.” Yang’s voice went high and quiet. “Do you want me to tell him?”

Blake ran her tongue over her teeth. “It’s your choice, Yang,” she said finally. “I’m here to help. And for the free food.” Yang laughed, but it was hollow. Blake gently elbowed her. “Hey. I’m here, Yang. I’m here.”

Yang nodded, but she was still staring straight ahead. “Thank you,” Yang said quietly.

“Yeah, of course.” 

* * *

“Where’s your festival dance outfit?” Weiss asked, sitting on the floor of Yang’s room and knee deep in her suitcase, re-folding all of her clothes before handing them off to Blake to be put away. 

“We’re not going to the dance,” Yang said tightly before Blake could even turn towards her.

Blake cocked her head. “There’s a dance?” she asked, raising a brow.

“Oh yes!” Penny chirped from Yang’s suitcase. “Everyone in town goes, Blake. You must come! It is quite fun.” 

Yang met her eyes and gave her a feeble smile. “I didn’t want to overwhelm you,” Yang said. “You’re doing me enough of a favor as is, and the dance is-” Yang hesitated. “A lot.”

“Look, Yang, if you want this to be believable, you have to take Blake to the dance,” Weiss said with a wave of her hand. “If you don’t, people aren’t going to believe she exists.”

“We literally went food shopping yesterday and saw half the town,” Blake deadpanned. “I’m pretty sure they know I exist.”

“Plus, there’s no better way to rub it in Neon’s face that you’re doing better without her than with Blake on your arm,” Weiss continued as if Blake hadn’t spoken. 

“And you love the dance, Yang!” Ruby added. “You know you can’t miss this year, you can’t!”

“I can, and I will,” Yang said, not looking any of them in the eyes as she re-folded a cropped sweater. 

Blake turned to Penny. “How bad is it?” she asked. Penny was the only sane measure of events. Ruby skittered away from events with more than ten people while Weiss’s bread and butter was schmoozing and networking and didn’t bat an eyelash at soirees. 

Penny tilted her head, considering. “It is a lot of people,” the redhead said finally. “But it is _genuinely_ a fun time.”

“Of course it is,” Weiss sniffed. “It’s the biggest and best event of the year here. Literally the whole island shows up and takes part. Shops have booths for their products, and there’s food trucks, and everyone dances. And I do mean _everyone_ , so there’s no getting out of it.”

Blake met Yang’s gaze, or tried to. Yang was still focused on the sweater in her hands. “I like dancing,” Blake said softly. “And really, Yang, I don’t mind. It sounds like a fun time.”

Yang didn’t look up. “You don’t have to, Blake. I don’t want to force you into anything.”

“It’s my choice to be here,” she pointed out. “And it’s my choice to show Neon up.” She forced a grin she didn’t feel. “So as long as you want to go, Yang, I want to.” 

Yang’s gaze was hesitant, but Weiss’s voice dragged her own gaze away. “We’ll need to get you a dress,” Weiss said, extending slender fingers as she counted. “And you’re going to need shoes. Probably a bag as well. Jewelry?”

“How fancy is this thing?” Blake asked.

“It’s pretty casual!” Ruby said. “But if you’re going to dance, you’re going to need something-”

“Something that’s not just sweaters,” Weiss interrupted. “You’ll be sweating within ten feet of the dance floor. You’ll die.”

Blake rolled her eyes, but she refocused her gaze on Yang. “Do you want to go to the dance?” she asked, extending her leg and kicking Yang gently. “Because if you want to just stay home, we can do that.” 

“I want to go,” Yang said slowly. “I do.” She nodded, and a distant smile broke out over her face.

“Like we were letting you stay home,” Weiss said, rolling her eyes. 

But Yang smiled at Blake, and there was a flicker of an emotion Blake couldn’t identify that danced over the blonde’s face. Yang kicked her back, just as gently, rolling her head around her shoulders. “You don’t have to do this, you know,” Yang said. “No matter what Weiss says.”

“It sounds fun,” she said.

* * *

“Keep your eyes closed,” Weiss ordered as something soft and powdery dusted over Blake’s eyelids. Blake’s nose twitched, and she barely resisted the urge to swipe at her face, holding off only because she knew Weiss would kill her and resurrect her to only go through the whole process again. 

“Use the gold next!” Ruby said from somewhere to Blake’s left, likely over Weiss’s shoulder. She could practically hear Weiss’s teeth gritting, and a smile fluttered on her lips before she stilled her face. “Use the gold next!”

“I was planning on it,” Weiss said. “Calm down, or I’ll sit you in the chair next.” Another careful brush over her eyes, touch still feather-light. “I have a red lipstick in my bag if you’d like, or a cherry lip balm. Don’t eat it this time.”

“It was one time!” Ruby squeaked. 

Blake’s heart skipped a beat as she heard Yang’s snort from behind her. “And you’re never living it down,” Yang drawled. Blake could picture Yang clearly in her mind, Yang leaning back on her hands and a foot propped up on the mattress and her hair curling over her shoulders and her lips curled up in a teasing smile and-

“What color lipstick?” Weiss asked, and Blake opened her eyes. Weiss was digging into a makeup bag she knew was solely dedicated to lip products, her brows furrowed. “I’m thinking plum or a rosewood or-”

“Do the plum,” Yang interrupted, and it took everything in her to not blush.

Still, she raised her brows. “Why plum?”

“Cause you look good in dark purple,” Yang said simply. As if she had thought about what colors Blake looked good in. As if she noticed the colors Blake favored. As if she thought about her and noticed her.

Weiss’s brow furrowed deeper before relaxing as she nodded. “Plum it is.” Weiss quickly swiped a liquid lipstick over Blake’s lips and dropped the tube into her lap when she was done. “Yang, you’re up.”

Blake rubbed her lips together as the lipstick dried down and stood up, stretching carefully. She brushed past Yang and stole her spot on Yang’s bed as Yang sat down in her chair. Blake smiled at the warmth left by Yang and slyly pulled the blanket around her. 

“Make sure she looks good!” Ruby said, hugging a pillow as Penny pulled her hair back with bobby pins and miniscule hair ties. “Neon can eat her heart out!”

“What do you think I’m doing?” Weiss asked crossly. Blake leaned in closer and stared at Weiss’s makeup bags. 

“You should use the gold from Penny’s birthday,” Blake found herself saying. “For her eyes.” As if those eyes needed any exaggeration to turn heads. 

“You all do realize I know what I’m doing,” Weiss sniffed, but Blake smiled and leaned onto her elbows as Weiss drew out the sparkly palette of eyeshadow. 

“Not too much glitter,” Yang warned. Her back was to Blake, but she could still practically see Yang rolling her eyes. “That shit gets everywhere.”

“It’s not glitter, it’s shimmer, so hush.” 

Blake tuned out the rest of Weiss’s and Yang’s bickering, instead checking her Scroll. Sun had sent her a thousand selfies of himself and Neptune from their vacation at the beach. She smiled as she scrolled through them, but her smile faded as she saw Sun’s last text.

_how u holding up_

Blake blew out a breath from deep in her chest and leaned deeper into her elbows. She texted back _Holding up. How’s vacay?_

_vacay is vacay. ill tell you about it tom! how r u doing?_

_Fine._ And then, after a moment, she typed again and sent another message. _Being in love with your best friend is stupid._

_:c u shud tell her._

Blake bit back a smile, even as her chest twisted. She snuck a look at Yang. She looked back at her Scroll. She sighed. _Nope._ Blake put her Scroll back in her pocket and caught a glimpse of Yang through the mirror, and she let herself imagine it. Just for a moment.

In private, because public confessions always seemed awful to her and awkward. Probably when the time felt _right_ , whatever that meant. However _right_ was quantified. She let herself imagine. Maybe they were doing homework and studying in her dorm, and Yang kept tapping her pen against her notebook, and Blake would laugh and ask her what she was doing, and Yang would give her some stupid answer, and the words would just come out. 

_I love you_.

They said it all the time, but this time, Yang would know it was different. And Yang’s face would shift into- into what? Surprise? Pity? Disgust? 

No. Not Yang. Never. 

Still, she could picture it all too clearly. Yang sneering at her and crushing her heart. It would be that simple, take that little to ruin her. And even though she knew, she _knew_ , Yang would never hurt her, hurt anyone like that, she also knew she wasn’t brave enough to risk it. 

Her throat thickened, and she took a deep breath.

“Ta-da!” Weiss said. “What do you think?” 

Blake forced herself to look up, and that deep breath was rendered pointless as all the air left her lungs. Fuck. Holy fucking fuck. 

It’s not that Yang needed makeup. It enhanced her features, sure, but even that wasn’t quite right. Yang could wear a paper bag and be beautiful, and she was stunning no matter how she looked. But the dark liner and rosy cheeks and cherry red lips shifted Yang’s beauty from something light and glowing and stunning to something sly and sexy and burning. 

Yang’s brows raised, and those red lips curved into a smile. “I take it Weiss did a good job?”

Blake swallowed hard. “I’d say so,” she managed. 

* * *

“You’ve never had caramel corn?” Yang asked, outraged. 

Blake shrugged and helped herself to another handful. “It’s good,” she said.

“Hell yeah, it’s good, but how have you never had it?”

“I don’t know.” Another shrug, another handful. Yang smiled and elbowed her, but she didn’t stop her as she stole more caramel popcorn from the bag Yang had bought for herself. “I’ve never really had the chance too.”

Yang smiled at her, and-

“Oh my gosh, _Yang_ ?” a voice squealed, and Blake’s stomach tied itself into knots. She simultaneously turned with Yang to reveal a familiar redhead. “Is that _you_ ?” Neon was a bright blur as she skated for them, a wide smile on her electric pink lips. “It _is_!” Sea green eyes darted to Blake, and something quick flickered over Neon’s face. Sadness, almost, but it was gone before Blake could identify the emotion. “And Blake.”

Blake’s fingers clenched and unclenched into a fist, and she felt Yang stiffen. “Neon,” Yang said, not particularly warmly. “It’s good to see you.” They hugged, but Blake didn’t miss the rigidity with which Yang moved. “Did you get the cotton candy yet?”

“I was just on my way there!” Neon chirped. Another flash of a cool gaze in her direction. “So, I guess I was right?” 

“Neon-” Yang’s voice was filled with nerves, and Blake turned to see all the blood drain from Yang’s face.

“I was right!” Neon’s face broke into a sharp and nasty grin. “I fucking called it.”

“Called what?” Blake asked.

“Oh, Yang didn’t tell you?” Neon’s smile was ruthless. “Did she not tell you why we broke up?”

Blake’s eyes darted to Yang, but Yang was staring down Neon, her face pale but her jaw clenched. “Neon. Not now.” 

“I broke up with Yang because she’s in love with you.” Neon shrugged. “At least, that was my guess. And apparently I was right.” 

The world tilted, and Blake wasn’t sure she was breathing. 

“Neon-”

“Okay, sure, Yang never _said_ anything like that, but, like, bullshit,” Neon said with another shrug. “And all she would ever talk about was you, and she _never even_ talked to me like she talked about you. So I guess I was right.” Neon smirked, and there was victory in her eyes. “I can’t believe she didn’t tell you.”

“We broke up because you wanted to date Flynt,” Yang said hoarsely.

Neon rolled her eyes. “I can have multiple reasons for wanting to break up! And your obvious feelings for Blake was, like, a pretty big one, you know?” Neon tossed her head and cocked her hip. “We both got feelings for other people, even if you didn’t want to admit it.” Neon’s eyes narrowed, and something bright moved behind them. “Unless you haven’t admitted it?”

“Neon-”

But Blake grabbed Yang’s hand, squeezed softly, and lifted her own chin. “Our relationship is none of your business,” she said frostily, but hot blood was still racing through her head. She felt her lips curl into a sharp polite smile. “If you’ll excuse us.”

Neon’s head tilted and her eyes narrowed, but she still nodded. “Good to see you!” she said, her voice oozing eager sweetness. She winked at Yang. “Call me!” And then she was off, skating through the fair and leaving chaos in her wake.

It was only when Blake felt Yang’s hand tense beneath hers that she realized they were still holding hands. She turned to Yang, whose face was still pale. “I can explain-”

“Let’s go get some cider,” she heard herself say. Calmer. Far calmer than she felt, not revealing the roiling sea of emotions churning beneath her skin. 

Yang nodded, and her gaze left Blake’s face, and Blake became aware of all the eyes on them. Heat rose to her face, but she managed a soft smile, tugging Yang along in the quietest direction of the fair, although there was no escaping the dull roaring in her ears. She didn’t stop pulling them along until they were at the edge of the fairgrounds and near the woods. The area was just barely lit by the fairy lights above, and as Blake turned to face Yang, it was hard to distinguish her individual features beyond the slope of her nose and the brightness of her eyes and the fullness of her lips.

“What was that about?” she asked, and this time, her voice did shake. Yang looked away, and Blake’s heart skipped a beat. “ _Yang_.”

“Neon broke up with me,” Yang said slowly. “Because she thought that I had feelings for you.”

“And did you?” _Do you?_

Yang huffed out a breath, running a hand through her hair. “Look, Blake, I don’t- it doesn’t matter, okay? You’re my best friend, and I love you, yeah, of course.”

“But?”

“But yeah, of course I’m in love with you.” Yang laughed, and it sounded like a half of a sob. “How could I not be?” Yang wiped at her face with her free hand, and Blake was distantly aware of her own hand squeezing Yang’s. “And Neon forced me to realize that, and I hate her for ruining our friendship because I can’t keep-”

Blake rushed forward and captured Yang’s lips. Yang’s mouth was open and soft, and Blake immediately leaned into Yang, their hands still entwined. Blake stood up on her tiptoes and reached with her free hand to hold the back of Yang’s head, carefully tangling her fingers into Yang’s silken locks. Her golden hair was chilled from the frosty night air, but it was still impossibly soft, almost as soft as Yang’s lips. 

She almost flinched as Yang’s hand settled on her waist, waiting for the push away, but she instead leaned closer into Yang’s heat. Yang pushed closer into her, and it was soft and sweet and better than she had dared to dream. Yang’s hand on her, Yang touching her, holding her, Brothers, it was enough to end her. 

When they broke apart for breath and Blake opened her eyes, she was met with the view of a slack-jawed Yang. She tensed as Yang’s throat bobbed, but Yang’s mouth, her soft, soft mouth, broke out into a trembling smile. “You love me too?” A breathless question, a whisper on the wind that almost broke Blake’s heart.

“Yes.” She slid her hand from Yang’s hair to cup her cheek. “I always have.” Her heart was rioting in her chest, but the words refused to stop pouring out. “I’ve loved you for the past three years, and I thought this was going to kill me.” She cocked her head, but she didn’t dare lean out of Yang’s grasp. “You love me, and you asked me to be your fake girlfriend?”

“Heh, well-” Yang’s face was bright red, even in the faint light. “I wasn’t sure if you would come if I didn’t give you a reason to.”

Blake brushed her thumb over Yang’s freckled cheek. “I would always come for you,” she said. “With you. How could you not know that?”

“Look, I just realized I had feelings for you like a month ago, I’m a little oblivious!”

“You are,” Blake agreed. She reached up on her tiptoes and kissed the corner of Yang’s mouth. “But I guess so am I.” Yang squeezed her hand, and Blake squeezed back. “I love you.” The words almost brought her to her knees, and she leaned further into Yang. 

Yang’s face broke into a stupid wide grin, and Blake smiled back. Their foreheads brushed together, and Blake stared into Yang’s lilac eyes and found everything she had ever hoped for. It was worth it. Yang was worth it. “I think I’m going to have to thank Neon,” she murmured.

“Let’s not talk about Neon right now,” Yang breathed, and then her mouth was on Blake’s once more. 

**Author's Note:**

> Happy New Year, friends!! <3


End file.
